Who I am
Who I am
Partnering 101: A Deep Dive into Leaving Kindly (2 of 10)
Get ready!
Quick! Think of your social security number. Good.
Now. What’s your partner’s social security number?
Welcome back to Partnering 101: A Deep Dive into Leaving Kindly. Are you ready for date night? (Or at least a valuable discussion and data collection session with your sweetie?) Grab your significant other, a pen and paper and make yourselves cozy for the next 30 minutes or so. Our topic is “Who I am”.
Each of the following nine sessions are designed to take care of the “important but not urgent” things, as Steven Covey would say. Very likely you don’t feel any urgency about the idea that your partner may someday no longer be at your side, but gathering information now may save you untold angst and time later. We will begin with the fairly easy and obvious. But it will be important to record the information in a way that makes sense to you. If you wish to have a live document that can be updated, then transfer what you gather into an online, secure document. (Click “Who I am worksheet”). If you wish to keep everything on paper for security or ease, that is fine too (Click PDF). Just be sure you both know where to find it later when you need it!
Got your cozy spot? Your partner? Your pen and worksheet? Your open mindset?
Get set!
WHO are you? Sounds simple, right? But there is actually an awful lot about you that someday others may need to know. If you aren’t around to tell your partner, they may need to look high and low and make phone calls to your family or doctors just to find out basic information. But you have each other here now, so this will be easy!
We’re going to get into stuff like legal names, social security numbers, family contacts and medications. If any of the information seems too invasive, then discuss with your partner how to record the information NOW for easy access LATER.
Together decide a system to hold all you will gather over the next weeks.
Tip 1: Be willing to take the time now to gather easy information. It will likely only take a few minutes to do the digging. If you don’t do it now, when will you?
Tip 2: Work with your partner to make the mundane fun! How could you possibly enjoy time together while at the same time writing down vital information? Well, perhaps you could first try to fill out the other person’s profile (in pencil). See how far you can get on your own? Come together with a sense of humor and enjoy the surprises. The worksheet took us less than 15 minutes to complete. How do you do?
Tip 3: Together decide a system to hold all you will gather over the next weeks. My husband and I have a filing cabinet and a lockbox. We also share some of our information on an online platform called Evernote. In this case, because we will be working with some information that is best kept secure, we will compile the printed worksheets in a binder and put it in the lockbox when we are done with the series.
Go!
Again, click on the purple button for access to the worksheet. After you have printed a copy for each of you, complete them and share your information. Continue discussing anything else that may come up. Enjoy each other’s company and make another date for next week. Finally, congratulate yourselves for taking the time to do something that is so important and yet so easily overlooked or avoided.
